A Life Worth Living
by Queen of the Wallflowers
Summary: Oneshot. Harley Quinn went from a trailer parker girl to a woman with a Ph.D. to the partner of a mad man to just another woman on the streets. Along the way, she fell, off buildings, in and out of love, and into hell to drag herself out. One night Batman and the company are there to drag her out and her life changes. She struggles to live a life worth living.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Batman or any of these characters. They belong to DC comics.**

 **Batman/Wonder Woman/Superman friendship or possible romance.**

 **Mentions of Dick/Barabra. Jason/Raven.**

 **Harley Quinn centric.**

 **AN: Their real names and Superhero names are used interchangeably.**

 **Warning: There is mentioned of abuse, sexual assault, violence, and sucicde.**

 **Characters:**

 **Bruce-Batman**

 **Clark-Superman**

 **Diana-Wonder Woman**

 **Dick- Robin- Little Bird 1- Batman**

 **Jason- Robin - Little Bird 2- Red X (Teen Titans)**

 **Rachel- Raven (Teen Titans)**

 **Title: A Life Worth Living**

* * *

A loud piercing cackle echoed in the room and a young woman scrambled backward on her butt and hands as she found herself backed up against the wall. A tall man picked her up and threw her into the center of the room, where she hits her head against the table. She tried to push herself up as the man simply strolled over to her whistling as he did. He kicked her hard and she gasped, her mouth making an o-shape.

Her red lipstick was smeared and there was blood in her mouth. Her face was showing signs of bruises. The Clown Princess of Crime didn't look much like a princess at the moment.

Harley grimaced as Joker aimed a kick to her ribs again. She curled up in a ball, bleeding and trying to make herself as small as possible. She tried to move away but Joker grabbed her by her ponytail and pulled her back towards him as she screamed. She couldn't help it.

"Worthless girl!"

He dragged her outside and kicked her again for good measure. This time she could feel another rib crack. She whimpered in pain and felt broken. She felt sticky and knew that her blood was mixing with her costume. Her blonde hair was knotty and bloody. The pink in her hair was redder and the blue in her hair was stained with blood.

Joker sighed as he stroked her hair, gently, tender, like he loved her. And Harley supposed that in his own twisted way he did. She bit her lip knowing that the end of the abuse was near.

"Oh, baby girl. You should know better than to mess up my thing with Batman."

He then kicked her again and spat on her.

He then laughed his signature laugh and sped away in his car with his goons, leaving her on the ground, black and blue.

* * *

Harley closed her eyes as she began to mentally think about her injuries.

Broken ankles, so running was out. Two cracked ribs, one broken, and at least three bruised. Her head had been slammed so a possible concussion.

She turned over painfully and placed some pressure on her left wrist only for it crumple and for her to let out a scream. Fractured wrist, probably from being banged against the table.

She whimpered as she heard footsteps. She curled up into a ball, trying to protect herself as best as she could.

The footsteps became louder and she could see a shadow grow bigger.

"Please."

Whether she was begging them to leave her alone or for them to help she wasn't too sure.

* * *

S he caught a flash of yellow and recognized it as the little bird.

If little bird was around than it meant that big bat would be here too.

The little bird, Robin, came close to her and she smiled faintly.

"Harley?"

"Little Bird."

She coughed and some blood came out.

He dropped to his knees and she tried to turn her head away, he didn't need to see Joker's cruelty. His hand ghosted over her body and she felt him touch her gently.

She felt her head began to pound and lights began to dance in her eyes. She felt herself growing weaker.

She was cold and was wondering where the big bat was. Little bird was not allowed anywhere near Joker alone.

Just as she thought that a cloak covered her body. It made her feel warm and she moaned.

Two arms went under her and scooped her up and she was pressed against a strong chest.

She buried her head into their neck and her eyes closed even though she could hear someone saying her name and telling her to open her eyes.

Her eyes closed and then there was nothing.

* * *

Robin watched as Joker sped off leaving Harley Quinn bleeding out on the ground. He had already called Batman and he was on his way. Robin jumped down to where the woman laid on the floor. She recognized him as she had called him little bird. He tried to see how bad her injuries were and noticed how she flinched a bit and that she tried to hide her face. She was shivering so he took off his cape and placed it over her. Batman arrived a few minutes later and he took off his cape, draping it over her and picked her up.

He carried her into the Batmobile and told Robin to call the others.

He zoomed through Gotham to get to the Batcave.

Wonder Woman and Superman were front and center of the group and when Batman came in with a bleeding Harley Quinn, her hands went up to her mouth. She had seen violence and anger and had seen people at their worst but to see the broken women in front of her was too much. The mortal world was cruel and not like her home. The Joker was cruel and she had heard from Batman how heartless and cold he was but to see the woman in love with him all but dead made the blood in her freeze. She wanted to tear the Joker limb from limb, regardless of Batman's rules.

Batman placed her on a bed and stepped back and pushed Robin towards the others. Flash placed a hand on his shoulder and guided him to a shower and then out of everyone's way as they waited.

Martian began to scan over her, accessing her injuries and Wonder Woman, no Diana, stepped forward and took a wash cloth and began to clean her face. She had placed her whip and her crown on the table.

Harley Quinn didn't need Wonder Woman, she needs Diana, she needed real people.

As she wiped the blood revealing heavier bruises, she looked towards the others. Batman looked lost and Superman looked like he wasn't sure what to do. So she took charge.

She ordered Clarke and Bruce to get some warm towels, extra blankets, and clothes. Oliver was sent to get Speedy to babysit Robin, who looked upset and to get Alfred, to babysit both boys. Speedy was meant to keep Robin company, Wally would just make Robin more nervous.

Once Martian announced her injuries, Harley Quinn was stripped of her uniform by Diana and Diane, given a sponge bath and was placed into a tank top and pants and wrapped in blankets. After her bath, the bruises were more pronounced and Bruce punched a wall. Diana had sighed and dragged him to another room to bandage his hand and to give him a chance to calm down.

Meanwhile, Harley was given antibiotics and had to have emergency surgery. It was going to be a very long night.

* * *

ixteen year old Diana held a sleepy Robin on her lap as Speedy leaned on her, playing his video game, eyes fighting sleep. The twelve-year-old had crawled into her lap earlier. She had a feeling seeing Harley on the ground bleeding, must have reminded him of his mother. Bruce paced up and down the hallway as they awaited news. Clarke was on a coffee run. Oliver and Diane were watching the monitors and listening for any signs of Joker or any other trouble. They had already called Commissioner Gordon to let him know that Harley Quinn was out of commission and being taken care by them.

Barry had gone home to Wally and Iris to rest up, he was most likely going to work a double shift while they waited for Harley to recover.

Hours passed and Robin fell asleep with his face buried in her hair. Speedy too, was pretty much on top on Diana and she smiling softly stroking their hair. She knew that the sixteen-year-old would be embarrassed to find out that he had fallen asleep. He was hoping to join the Justice League.

"Bruce."

He turned to see her with both boys sleeping. He moved Speedy and she stood up with Robin and they placed them down on a spare cot and threw a few blankets over them. It wouldn't be the most comfortable sleep, but it would do, for now.

Clarke came back with their third coffee of the night. Bruce eagerly reached for his while Clarke set the tray down as Diana took a sip of hers. She placed it down as she strolled over to where Bruce was. Diana slipped her hands into the crook of Bruce's arm and Clarke stood behind them, one hand on her waist, the other on his shoulder.

She squeezed his arm gently.

"Bruce."

He just stared at the room where the broken woman laid.

Martian came out, his face grim. Dr. Leslie, who Alfred had called and Flash had picked up looked exhausted.

"She lost a lot of blood and she has two broken ribs and four bruised ones. One rib almost punctured a lung so we had to do some emergency surgery. She has a concussion and we had to reset her broken ankle and leg. She's pretty banged up."

Diana had closed her eyes as Bruce shook her and Clarke off and stormed off.

Clarke squeezed her hip and took off after his best friend. Martian and gave her sad looks and she sighed.

Diana settled herself on a chair next to Harley's bed and kept vigil.

* * *

A few hours later, Bruce came in with hot chocolate and a sheepish smile.

Diana stood up and stretched her limbs and she took her hot chocolate from him, turning back on him.

Bruce wrapped his arms around her waist and he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry."

She tilted her head to press a kiss to his jaw.

"I understand."

Her eyes landed on the sleeping girl and she smooths back a curl before Bruce can stop her, however, she can feel the look he gives her under his bat mask.

"She looks so young, early 20s. Just a girl."

"Her file says 26, only a few years younger than us."

Diana laughed hollowly. She looks twenty-five but she is much much older. Bruce may be in his twenties but the responsibilities on his shoulders made him look much older.

"26? She should be going to school, planning her wedding, among the ranks in her career, she has a Ph.D.! She should be going out, living life, not being a punching bag for some mad man."

"She's smart, got her degrees young. Wanted a better life for herself. Joker saw a smart lonely girl and swooped in. He took advantage of that and she was a goner."

"She's still young enough to start over."

"Diana."

She felt him sigh and kiss her forehead.

"She's going to be okay."

There was a sound in the hallway and Bruce moved away from Diane.

He wasn't comfortable with people knowing that he was an affectionate person. It was okay with his kids or with Clarke and Diana but that was it. Also, there was a chance that it would be Dick, and he didn't want the boy to get any ideas.

Speedy came in with a sleeping Robin on his back. The older boy looked exhausted.

"We are going to sleep in a real bed."

Batman nodded.

"Agent A will help you."

He made a quick phone call and Alfred came and helped the boys make a small bed on one of the couches.

Bruce and Diana went to tuck the boys in.

"Will Miss Harley be alright?"

Dick looked up at them with big, sleepy eyes and Roy was quiet and Diane sat down on the bed smoothing his hair and looked at both boys.

"Miss Quinn is going to be fine. She's got Batman and Superman watching out for her."

"She's got Wonder Woman looking out for her too."

She smiled up at Bruce as he squeezed her shoulder.

"Night boys." She kissed their foreheads, and for once Roy didn't comment how they were treating him like a child.

They left a light on. The two found Clarke in Harley's room.

He wrapped an arm around Diane's waist and Bruce wrapped his arm around both of them.

They stayed like that until Clarke sighed.

"I have to go back home and get some sleep before work. Keep me posted?"

"You could sleep in the manor? Take the boys home."

Clarke laughed.

"And get Dick started again? Plus the press would have a field day seeing Clarke Kent leave Bruce Wayne's manor."

He pressed a kiss to Diana's head and squeezed Bruce's shoulder and smoothed out Harley Quinn's hair before he took off.

Bruce sat down on the hair and pulled Diane onto his lap. She wrapped and arm around him and she falls asleep as he kept vigil.

* * *

Harley woke up to the sound of beeps, the smell of coffee, and the sound of soft voices and snoring.

She opened her eyes to find Batman sprawled out on a chair with a red cape draped over him.

Sitting on the window still was a dark haired woman whom she recognized as Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman was talking to the little bird Robin, she had a cup of coffee in her hand.

Robin looked over to the bed and his eyes widened when he saw her.

She smiled as she took in the boy, mask held to his face, wide grin. Wonder Woman reached for his mask, securing it.

He climbed down and rushed to her bed, his childish excitement over her being awake taking over any precaution, Bruce instilled into him.

"Miss Quinn's awake!"

Wonder Woman smile at her and she gently shook Batman awake who look relieved to see her awake, but less relieved to see Robin in the room.

"Miss Quinn."

"Hey Bats."

"How are you feeling?"

Harley smiles faintly. This isn't the first time she has had to receive medical care after a beating, but this is by far the most interesting time.

"Like I have been hit by a truck. How bad is it?"

Batman's eyes drifted to Robin and Wonder Woman pulled him towards her, tickling the boy.

"Let's get your breakfast buddy."

Batman waits until they are gone before he answers her.

"Bad. You lost a lot of blood, two broken ribs, and four bruised ones. One rib punctured a lung so you had emergency surgery. One concussion and they had to reset your broken ankle and leg."

Harley began to cry, she never had heard such a long list.

"I almost died didn't I?"

Batman sighed and reached for her hand squeezing it. He wasn't good at offering comfort but he knew that little gestures like this one were appreciated.

"You could have."

Batman nodded and he hesitated.

She could tell that something was wrong.

"Bats?"

"Hey, D-Wonder?"

Wonder Woman came bustling in and she sat on the bed and placed her hands on both of theirs.

Harley looked at the dark-haired woman who only looked a few years older than her, but looked at her the way a mother would look at her child.

"I can't." Batman stuttered out and Wonder Woman nodded, squeezing their hands. She focuses on Harley.

"Miss Quinn. I'm sorry to tell you this but you lost the baby."

Harley blinked and then her gaze swung between the two superheroes.

"What? What baby?"

The supers exchange a glance and then Diana speaks gently.

"Sweetie, you were pregnant."

"I was pregnant?" She sounds like a little girl, confused and scared. She squeezes their hands tighter.

She nodded and then it hits Harley. She was pregnant.

"How many?"

"Almost three months."

Her hand drifted to her stomach.

"I killed my baby." She feels sick and she leans over the bed and throws up.

Diana brushed her hair out of her face as Bruce reaches for a trash can.

"No honey, you did not kill your baby. He did. Joker killed your baby."

"Joker killed my baby."

She throws up again.

She sounded so broken that Diane broke protocol and wrapped an arm around the crying woman.

Batman walked out of the room leaving them to be.

He found a note that said that Alfred had called the school saying that Dick was sick. He sighed, knowing that Barbara Gordon would try to find a way to come over and check on him. He found it endearing but at times like this, a bit annoying. That girl was too curious, too observant, too loyal, too in love.

He found his son at the computer looking through files.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for Joker."

"What?"

"He almost killed, Miss Harley."

Bruce placed a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Richard."

Dck crumpled and began to cry and Bruce wrapped the young boy in his arms. It must have been hard for him to see Harley on the ground half dead, it surely must have brought back memories of his mother and father.

Bruce couldn't deny that even though Harley was insane, she had always been careful around Robin. She seemed to have a soft spot for him, for all kids.

After his sobs subsidized, Bruce and Dick had breakfast. Barry came in and offered to take Dick over to his place to play with Wally, who also didn't have school.

Dick left and Bruce went to bring Diana her breakfast.

He found Harley and Diana talking. It seemed like she had managed to cheer up Harley a bit.

He had never seen Wonder Woman so relaxed and he gave her a warning look.

There was no guarantee that Harley would stay away from Joker. She always went back to him.

She gave him a look back and he sat down on the chair.

He handed out the breakfast and looked at Harley.

"Miss Quinn, it's going to be a long recovery. You will be staying here until you are completely better."

He saw her bite her lip and he sighed.

"It's no bother and it would save me from having to worry about you."

She nods and then grimaces, her hand drifting towards her ribs.

Diana is up on her feet and Bruce sighs and gently pulls her away.

"We are going to get a doctor."

He calls Leslie who was already on her way.

She checks Harley and talks with her for a bit while he makes an appearance as Bruce at the company.

Clark is at work but he swings by later that night with dinner.

They fall into a rhythm.

Leslie swings by to check on her in the morning and Bruce leaves to work after speaking with them both. Diana comes by and keeps Harley company for a few hours, and Bruce swings by with lunch on those days and Diana leaves to make an appearance in public. She comes back and Clark swings by with dinner. They alternate nights so the cities are protective. Sometimes Dick stops by but only when Bruce is there so he can keep his little bird from spilling secrets.

Harley sees a new side to the three superheroes, she feels safe and protective. She grows fonder of Robin, wondering if her child would have been like him.

* * *

Then, Leslie announces her to be completely better.

Now, what happens?

Enter Bruce Wayne.

He shows up one day in her room and Wonder Woman bows her head trying to fight a smile as he kisses her hand.

"Miss Wonder, looking as lovely as usual."

"Miss Quinn." He kisses her hand and Harley blushed.

There is no denying that Bruce Wayne has a way with the ladies.

He tells Harley he wants to give her her life back. He agrees to fund her new life, away from Joker. Harley agrees, she wants to start over.

So they send her away.

And Harley is happy.

But what goes up, must come down.

* * *

Joker finds Harley six months later.

He storms back into her life and Harley fights.

But he smart, he has been watching her for some time, bidding for the right moment. He knows what to do.

He gestures around the apartment.

"Do you think they will protect you? You are nothing but a villain. A whore."

"I won't go with you."

"What's worse to live with, the people you kill yourself or the people who would die because you said no to me?"

"What?"

He looks into her eyes.

"From now on, every day you spend away from me means one person will die every hour. 24 people each day. "

She shakes her head no and he leaves his maniacal laugh filling the air.

She watches the tv and by the third hour, the little child that has been killed, she can't take it. She won't let him kill another child, another person because of her.

She writes a note to Bruce, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman, and the little bird of course.

The next day she is by his side, mask in place and all villains rejoice because the queen has taken her place by her joker's side.

When Batman sees her he is filled with so much anger. He is blind to the pain in her eyes.

The next few years are full of ups and downs. A few times she leaves to be with Ivy but she eventually goes back to him, fear keeping her tied to him.

* * *

A few years later, Batman introduces another little bird into the mix. This one's different, he fights dirty, street like and Joker likes the challenge. The more time she spends with Joker, the more she sees how insane he is. She is terrified.

The first little bird has grown up and now has a she-bat by his side.

The second bird angers Joker because if Batman can replace his faithful bird what's to say he can't be replaced too?

Joker slaughters the second bird in an empty warehouse while she screams in horror. She shoots Joker twice and then she runs to the little bird trying to keep his blood in him. "Little bird. Littles bird."

He's crying.

"Dad?"

"Hush little bird. It's going to be okay. It's going to be okay."

He's just a child.

Batman shoves her out of the way and the first little bird is there with the she-bat and they are all crying.

She watched them go as she kneels there in a pool of blood. There is blood on her hands, there always has been, but this, this one is personal.

It's a child.

It's one of her little birds.

* * *

She goes to search for Joker, with a gun in her hand.

She finds him a few days later drinking in a warehouse. She fingers the gun and thinks about how it will feel to end his life. To destroy the monster he is. Then to destroy herself, the monster she has become.

She closes her eyes and takes in a huge gulp of air.

Her finger goes to pull the trigger only to find it being ripped out of her hands. She's shoved against a wall and finds herself looking at Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm ending this, ending him."

"Why do you care?"

"He broke his promise to me."

Batman laughs, dark and twisted. Behind him, the other supers exchange worried glances.

"He promised me that he would never kill another child, not after Bella Andres."

"Bella Andres?"

Superman jumped in.

"'She was the little three-year-old girl Joker tortured and murdered, gave her his smile."

"He found me all those years ago, told me that for every day I refused to return to him he would kill twenty-four people, one each hour. When I went back to him, I begged him made him swear in front of everyone never to harm another child. It doesn't matter if the child is a superhero, he swore no child would die, never again."

She's crying and Batman is shaking.

Wonder Woman pulls him away from her and she turns back to see Joker laughing and drinking. He has no clue that his life rests in their hands.

"Killing him doesn't bring back my son, my partner, it doesn't bring back your old life."

"I don't want my old life. I don't even want my life."

Wonder Woman gasps and Superman takes a step back. Batman looks at her and she stares him right in the eye, refusing to back down.

"I don't condemn killing."

"You won't be the one killing him."

Batman grabs her arm and they stand at a standstill.

Batman holding onto her, Wonder Woman holding Batman, and Superman is just there ready to jump in.

Then Batman lets her go and walks away, shoulder slumped. She stands there feeling stunned and surprisingly defeated.

Wonder Women kisses her forehead and touches her cheek gently.

"Be brave."

Superman follows them, giving her a brief nod.

She cocks the gun in Joker's direction and then a mental bat is the last thing she sees before she is knocked out cold.

When she comes to, she is in a hospital, and when they ask for her name, she thinks of the superheroes and she takes a deep breath and the words that Wonder Woman told her, wrap themselves around in her brain. So she tells them it's Hazel Linn.

* * *

She finds redemption working at an orphanage. Her hair is now dark brown, instead of the bleach blonde she used to dye it.

She goes to church on Sundays and does yoga on Thursday nights. She adopts a small puppy, who she names Lucky.

She watches the news as the Joker ad his beloved Harkey Quinn are recking havoc.

She has no idea who has replaced her and how it was possible but she supposed there was some fangirl of his who jumped at the chance to be his puddin but regardless, she is thankful for the chance it gave her to start over.

She looks up at the clock as the door opens. Right on time, as always.

"Hey, Jason. Rachel."

"Hey, Miss Linn."

Jason and Rachel are a young couple, young enough to be her kids if she ever had any, but there is no denying their love and affection for each other. She doesn't know much about them other than the fact that Jason grew up in the streets until he was taken in by a family and then he had run away from them. He's in touch with them now, his brothers mostly, but it is a strained relationship, especially with the man who was his foster father. All he has to stay is that they had different views on life. Rachel grew up in an orphanage too but that is all she knows about her. The pretty goth girl from California is tight-lipped about her past.

Harley turns to call out for the three kids, who she can see are peering out from behind the door. Rachel had rescued the three kids who she had found wandering the streets looking for help, for their mother who was half dead. Their mother was still very weak and in the hospital and there had been talk about what to do with the kids once she died. However, it seemed like Rachel had bonded with them and Jason adored them. She was pretty sure they would considering adopting them. She knew their age could be a barrier but one would have to be blind not to see the connection.

"Jason and Rachel are here!"

She watches the three of them run out, tripping over each other and she watches the young couple pick up the kids laughing. Jason swings one of the boys up and around while the little girl attaches herself to Rachels's hand, the other boy to her leg. The children are talking at full volume, full speed and she has no clue as to what is being said.

They walk out and she sighs.

Bruce Wayne's oldest son Richard Grayson has announced his marriage to best friend Barabra Gordon.

It's a sweet story about young love and happiness and a happily ever after with a neat little bow.

She sees Bruce Wayne standing next to women's advocate Diane Prince. Clark Kent, the reporter stands next to them and she looks at them. Her eyes widen and she takes them in, studying them.

She wants to laugh, how is it that no one has put it together?

Her eyes land on Richard Grayson. Her little bird.

"Little Bird."

He's so grown up, left the nest to build his own. She can't help but feel proud.

The words lid out of her lips and she laughs.

Jason and Rachel come back with three happy and ice creamed filled kids.

"Okay birdies. Say thank you to Miss Rachel and Mister Jason!"

Jason is looking at her with a weird look in his eyes, he seems frozen.

"Birdies?"

She smiles softly, her eyes on the tv, watching Dick and Barabra laughing.

His eyes follow her.

"I had a baby once but my boyfriend injured me one night and I ended up having a miscarriage. I got taken care of by a nice man and he had a son. Used to call him little bird. He had a brother, my little bird. My two little birds."

Jason looks at the brunette woman, she looks nothing like the women he knew. He has no idea if she is Harley Quinn but he can feel it in his gut that it's her.

She is thinner but she seems so much younger.

* * *

"Little bird."

He whispers it and Raven looks up at him, he looks lost, like a little boy. Harley is too busy talking to the kids to hear anything.

He doesn't say a word until they are home in bed later that evening. He sinks down into it and she is silent knowing that something on his mind. He pulls her toward him and sighs.

Then he buried his face into her purple hair, tears on his face. She sits on his lap, holding him close, letting him let it out.

"Raven. She's called me little bird before I died."

"Jason."

"Little bird that's the last thing I remember. If Miss Linn was the Harley Quinn I knew then who is the one with Joker now?"

The purple haired girl shugs and holds her boyfriend tightly. He presses a kiss to her forehead and she presses one to his neck.

They fall back onto the bed and his eyes close.

"I love you, Raven.

"I love you, Jason Todd."

* * *

The blonde haired woman walked into the bar, in a pretty green dress, she sits down next to a brunette.

"I got your message, Quinn."

"No sweet words for the woman who used to babysit you, Mis?"

"What do you want? I'm exhausted. I had a wedding yesterday. "

"I saw it on television."

She hands an envelope to her.

"Can you give the happy couple this?"

Artemis eyes the envelope but takes it anyway.

"What's in it?"

"A gift for the happy couple."

The blonde nods and the brunette stands up, pays for her drink, grabs her purse.

Then she leans down and whispers into the blonde's ear.

"Nice to see you Artemis. Be sure to tell that boy toy of yours that if don't take care of you properly, that I will step in and take care of him. Tell your sister I said hello and that her daughter is gorgeous."

Artemis watches Harley Quinn walk out of the bar.

She turns around at the last second and sends her a teasing smirk.

"I'm talking about that straight-shooter of yours. Good man, great father."

Artemis watches her disappear back to her new life.

* * *

Artemis goes home to Roy and her niece, she thinks about the present, as they all cuddle on the couch, a movie on the screen, Roy with his arm around her as Linn snores softly next to them. The burner phone on the table, with Harley's message to her sister sent. She doesn't expect a response, nor does she get one.

Somewhere in the Caribbean, Richard and Barabra are in bed laughing drunk and in love. They think and talk about the future. They are building their own little nest.

Jason and Rachel are in bed, two normal young adults. One thinks about the future, the other the past. They hold each other close, pressed together, small light kisses serve as a reminder of the present. The wedding invitation on the floor, the black suit and purple silk dress on the floor. Adoption papers on the table, a wedding ring hidden in the teapot.

And in Gotham City, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman are all on the same roof thinking about the past. Under the mask and the capes, Bruce, Diana, and Clarke think of the future.

Harley Quinn lays in her lonely bed and she thinks of the past and the future.

* * *

Diana and Clarke stand arm in arm and after seeing them with Batman for so long, it's a sad and shocking sight. Richard and Barabra are silent as they talk to Wally, Artemis, Connor, and Roy, the baby in her arms asleep. Tim and Damien stand next to each other silently, they have not gotten into a fight with each other since that day. Jason stands with Raven and their kids, next to his brothers and sisters. The other leaguers and other supers are all here.

No one very though this day would come.

It was like everyone had forgotten the truth about Batman.

He was human and humans die.

Alfred speaks, for the second time about the man he loved as a son. This time he does it not in a cemetery but in the basement of an old church and everyone is moved to tears. Standing at the very back, hidden in the shadows, is Miss Harley Quinn, Miss Linn or Miss Quinn depending on who you ask.

She wipes away a tear for the man who showed her so much kindness every time she needed to be rescued.

She mourns for the man behind the mask and the loved ones he leaves behind.

She leaves quietly but Diana sees a flash of blonde hair .

* * *

It's weird to have her blonde hair, it's a wig but still, she has grown used to having her dark hair back, she had hoped that she would never have to go back to the bleached blonde.

She's dressed in black jeans and a red shirt, with a black hoodie.

The gun in her hand is cold and final. She will be seeing this to the end.

Batman is dead, Joker is not.

She finds him in an empty warehouse.

He is pounding into Harley Quinn, the new one, her replacement.

She wants to laugh. The fool never realized that she had been replaced.

It's almost poetic. Joker, the evil, will die in pleasure. Batman, the good, died in agony.

She enters the warehouse and forces out the words, the old nickname that once came easily to her.

"Miss me Puddin?"

She trills gun cocked, ready to shoot. Maybe she should have grabbed her old baseball bat, for old times sakes and for the Big Bat's honor.

Joker freezes.

"Harley?"

He looks at her and then looks at the girl bent over the table.

She pulls the trigger and he watches as the bullet flies into her replacement's skull.

Joker jumps back.

He is aroused, by the fight, the arrival of a new player.

"You don't have the guts, darling. Join me. Rule by my side."

She holds the gun steady, thinking of Batman, of Wonder Woman, and of Superman, how close they were. She thinks of her little birds. She thinks about her baby, her child that she never knew but loved more than anything else. She thinks of everyone he killed, the children he murdered and it's easy. Very easy to pull the trigger.

Joker dies with a manic smile on his face as she watches him fall back, no remorse on her face.

She drops her stance and walks out of the warehouse, leaving behind the man she loved and hated, the man who created and ruined her.

A few minutes later, Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, Robin, and the others storm the warehouse, ready to do what the first Batman himself could not do.

Instead of finding Joker, they find a dead Harley Quinn slumped over the table and Joker dead on the ground, his blood spilling out of him. It's chaos. Wonder Woman eyes the carnage and points to a spot.

"The shooter stood there."

"Which means they couldn't have gone too far." Dick, who is now Batman, has a feeling that he knows how did this and he can't help but feel grateful.

"The beach or the harbor. You can dump clothes or weapons there."

* * *

She walks to the harbor and takes a deep breath of the salty air.

She can feel the wind on her face, the weight of the gun in her hand.

She is only forty years old but she feels so much older. She has lived a long life, under various names.

"Miss Quinn!"

She turns and finds herself staring at Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, two little birds, these are unfamiliar to her, and other supers all looking at her.

"Don't do this Miss Quinn."

It's Batman's voice but there's something there that lets her know he's younger than the old bat, call it mother instincts, but she knows that it's her little bird under the mask.

"Little bird. You saved me. So I save you."

"Miss Quinn."

He's a child playing dress up. She knows he's a man but she looks at him and all she can see is her Little Bird. But he makes a good bat, just like his mentor and father.

"Miss Quinn is dead."

She then tosses the gun out to sea and she pulls off her wig. She burns it. She strips off her clothes mechanically and stands there in her bra and panties as she watches her old life go up in flames.

A dark and warm cloak is placed on her shoulders and it's so familiar she sinks into it.

It's all over. Finally.

Joker is dead. Her Batman is dead. Her first Little Bird is alive and married. The second Little Bird is not. There are several more Bat-children. The other supers are alive. She is alive.

She wishes she was dead. She should have died when her Bats and her Joker died but she's alive.

She's alive.

Now she just has to live.

Not as Dr. Harleen Quinzel, nor as Harley Quinn, not as the Clown Princess or as a suicide squad member, but as Hazel Linn, volunteer.

She has to live, for Batman, for her little birds, for her dead baby, for the children Joker killed, for all those she killed. She has to live for herself. She needs to make amends.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading this.**

 **Tell me what you think!**

 **-Queen**


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